


Strength in Dying

by only_one_word



Category: Teen Wolf (TV)
Genre: M/M, Sterek only in subtext
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2012-08-07
Updated: 2012-08-07
Packaged: 2017-11-11 16:16:10
Rating: Mature
Warnings: Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings
Chapters: 1
Words: 1,063
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/480416
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/only_one_word/pseuds/only_one_word
Summary: <blockquote class="userstuff">
              <p>Stiles is dying on the floor, while everything else happens around him and Derek and maybe Isaac.</p><p>Spoilers for 212 promo and Sneak Peek, along with everything before that.</p>
            </blockquote>





	Strength in Dying

**Author's Note:**

> I made a thing, inspired by this: http://angelwingkayla.tumblr.com/post/28927034146/so-my-sister-pointed-this-out-to-me-if-stiles loosely. If you can't tell, he takes some of Stiles pain away, but there's no face touching that happens (or that you can see).

"Derek, what are you-" Stiles breaths past the blood, and tries not to choke too much. There are black spots in his eyes. He ignores them. "Derek. I said I don't want the bite, it wouldn't work anyway, Derek-"

He doesn't even know if Derek can hear him past the blood still, but he's a werewolf, so he should be able to hear everything. 

"Shut up Stiles, I'm not giving you the bite."

Stiles' body flails then, panicing. The floor is hard and immovable, but it feels like everything keeps spining and flipping and turning while he sways, stuck in the middle of it. He coughs, and yeah, the blood is getting worse because it sounds even worse, sounds wet and painful. He's not sure what it feels like. 

"Der- _ek_."

He's leaning over him, both hands on his face, the threats and chaos ignored for now. Stiles thinks he can hear Scott. He thinks he can hear his heartbeat too. Everything is still moving and unsteady beneath him. Somehow, though, his brain starts to function again, like he can think a little better past that accidental werewolf slash to the throat. It's only a small cut compared to the pain he's feeling.

"Breath Stiles." 

He tries, his eyelids fluttering as he does. It's hard to focus, and it's like drowning, only so so much worse. Derek has his eyes focused on him though, so he tries. The next breath is just as bad. But he keeps breathing. The rest of his body, beyond his throat, is still battered and probably bloody, but it's not creating the overwhelming fear of death like it had before. He takes another breath. 

"Did it work?" It sounds like Isaac to Stiles. He could be wrong. 

"I think so." That's Derek. Stiles can see his mouth moving, his eyes not leaving his, but flickering back and forth like looking at the other eye will give him answers. 

" _Der-ek_ ," he has to stop fully for a second, breath past another long moment of pain and panic, "My- dad. Take care of him." Derek looks a little angry for a moment, and that makes angry and frsutrated too, but he doesn't have room for it between all this pain, "I'm dying. So. You have to. I-"

"Shut _up_ , Stiles. Breath. Shut up and _breath,_ damn it." Stiles can't tell if he's being loud or not, his ears are starting to make a ringing sound. 

"Okay," he doesn't know why he says it. Maybe it's because he wants the last word, no matter how painful it is. He doesn't thinks so. Maybe it's because he's never really agreed to do what Derek says. Yeah. That makes more sense.

Stiles blacks out before he can do what he asked though. 

-

When he wakes up it hurts. He thinks maybe Gerard and his pet Kanima did a larger bit of damage than he had thought, and maybe the adrenalin disguised it. He can hear his dad, and the doctor talking. He can hear a few other things too. He goes back to sleep.

-

He wakes up and Derek's there this time. He's not sure how he knows, or if he's right, until he opens his eyes and sees him looming above him. Stiles wets his lips, like he's going to say something. But he never does. The heart monitor is loud. Derek looks more than just tired, he looks wrecked.

-

The next time he wakes up, he thinks he's alone. For some reason, the thought is unsettling. He can feel the beginnings of panic starting up, and just like magic, Isaac opens the door. 

"You feel okay?" Stiles thinks Isaac probably feels awkward. He can't tell if he does or not. 

"I. Yeah-" _fine,_ his mouth tries to supply, but for some reason, he doesn't let himself. 

"Different." He adds, once he thinks about it. Isaac does a quick nod, looking away from Stiles eyes.

"Derek bit you. After. Well. You passed out, and I- we- well, me and Scott, convinced him. That it would help if you lived a day or longer. And if it didn't take, you would- could have died anyway. So."

There's an implied _I hope you're not mad_ somewhere, in there. 

"I guess it's for the best. It was going to happen eventually. Did it help?"

Isaac looks up, surprised. "The bite?"

"Yeah. Did it help?"

"It helped. Derek said- well, he thinks. You would have died. If he hadn't."

"Thanks." Stiles meets Isaac's eye. He means it.

"You're welcome."

-

The next morning he has to talk to people, even though he feels weird and raw and _different_. Isaac can't pretend to the nurses that he hadn't woken up when they saw them talking. After it, while Stiles is tired from being so tense and having been kept awake from the now near-constant noise coming form everywhere in the hospital, Derek visits. 

"Isaac said you thanked him, after he explained."

"I did." Stiles shrugged. "It kind of saved my life." 

"You weren't healing all the way because it kept opening up. When the bite took affect, it healed almost everything enough to recover."

"Yeah?"

"Dr. Deaton said it was the best choice we could have made."

Derek was guilty, Stiles knew, because he told him no.

"Dude, I get it. It's what you had to do. What about my dad? Did you take care of him while I was out?"

"I did. He's fine, but when he saw you . . ." Derek looked away.

"Okay. Well, I- Thank you. Just. I don't know- what really happened back there. But. For everything really, just thanks. I mean it. Seriously." For some reason, his words weren't working. He doesn't know why. 

Derek swallowed and from here, he could hear his throat clicking dryly. He changed the subject. "They're keeping you here for a day, so they can make sure you're better."

Stiles didn't respond, because he already knew that. The doctor had talked to him while he ate.

"What do you plan on doing?"

"Doing?"

"You're a werewolf now, Stiles." Like that explains anything. Somehow, it does. 

"Oh." Stiles had to close his eyes, had to bow his head. 

"It's okay. Think about it later." Derek is closer, with his hand on Stiles shoulder. It reminds him of dying again, of not being able to breathe. His hand is warm.

"Okay."


End file.
